The Witching Hour
by Meum Cerebrum Nocet
Summary: She peaked out from behind the curtain, that cold eerie night, and witnessed an absolute tragedy. It was a night, an hour, a moment that would change so much.


_**Summary:**_ _She peaked out from behind the curtain, that cold eerie night, and witnessed an absolute tragedy. It was a night, an hour, a moment that would change so much._

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ _I don't own any recognizable content. Characters and story belong to the amazing J.K. Rowling_

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 **The Witching Hour**

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 _As happens sometimes, a moment settled and hovered and remained for much more than a moment. And sound stopped and movement stopped for much more than a moment._

 _~John Steinbeck_

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Godric's Hallow was a sleep little village nestled comfortable in the scenic British countryside. It house families that could trace their roots back generations, all growing up on the same streets and going to the same local church as their five- and six-times great-grandparents. It was a town with a lot of history and, according to some whispers and hushed conversations, perhaps even some magic.

For a small, inquisitive five-year-old, with a few strange abilities (like making her stuffed animals dance by looking at them) that she kept absolutely secret, it was a perfect place to grown up. Much like many of the families along her street, the five-year-olds parents had grown up in Godric's Hallow. As had their parents, and their parents, et cetera ad nauseam.

One of the best parts of living in Godric's Hallow, at least in the talented five-year-olds eyes' was the Halloween celebration. On the 31st of October every year, the celebration of all things magical, the town of Godric's Hallow drew on its normally secretive magical history, and threw a large town-wide celebration. There was food, including the required sweets and treats. Townsfolk set up fun activities for the kids to partake in, ad every year the church's graveyard was set up as a spooky haunted area.

On the Halloween of 1981, the five-year-old girl was finally deemed old enough to attend the town's festivities. She excitedly joined her parents and her two older brothers in the town square and made sure she saw, did, and tasted everything she could. Finally, as the sky grew dark and the sun sunk beneath the horizon, the young girl, watching, slightly enviously, as her older brothers' ran around the celebration, was taken home by her parents. She was not tired in the least, and definitely not ready for bed.

Her parents lovingly put her to bed after a warm bath and a story about a princess, but the little girl, despite her parents' best efforts, did not fall asleep. Instead, she lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling and imagining what her brothers were up to out at the town's celebration.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the young girl quietly climbed out of bed and plodded over to the window. She was sure her brothers should be home soon and she wanted to be absolutely sure when they did. That way, she would know that she wasn't missing out on anything and could finally go to sleep.

A figure was slowly making its way down the sidewalk across the street. It didn't look like either of her brothers, yet the girl still watched its progress, curious about where it was going. The figure came to a rest in front of an empty lot across the street and a few houses down. It seemed to be looking at something, which only made the girl more curious. There wasn't anything there to look at.

Slowly, the figure raised its long, sleeved arm and waved it around. It was a strange motion and the girl had no idea what the figure was doing. Then, in a blink of an eye, the figure stepped into the empty lot and vanished from sight.

The little girl jumped at the surprising sight, but held in her yelp. She couldn't believe what she'd just seen, despite the fact that she wholeheartedly believed in magic and was almost positive that she could perform it. But it was one thing to believe in something ad another to see it performed by someone else. She needed to see more, needed to get closer.

Quickly, she made the decision to sneak out of her quiet house and get closer to the strange empty lot. That way, she could examine the area, figure out what magical properties it possessed and possibly figure out who the mysterious figure was.

As quiet as a mouse, the five-year-old crept out of her room, thankful that the door to her bedroom didn't squeak, and down the hall. The house was dark, quiet. Her parents must have bee asleep already and her brothers had either suck in without her realising, or they were still out. However, she was far too focused on her current mystery to indulge a second mystery.

Finally, she reached the large front door ad stared up at it, a little intimidated. This was a big, heavy door, and it was the final obstacle she had to face. Taking a deep breath, the young girl stood on her tippy-toes ad reached for the doorknob. She was just tall enough to reach and gently twisted the knob. The door swung open and the cool autumn air rushed in around her.

With a large smile crossing her face, the little girl stepped out onto the garden path in front of her house. She followed it to the sidewalk and then walked along until she was directly across the street from the empty lot. She looked both ways, as her parents had drilled into her, before crossing the street to stand on the sidewalk right in front of the empty lot.

The little girl squinted into the darkness of the lot but couldn't see anything. All it looked like was an overgrown green space. She tried to take a step forward, to enter the lot just like the mysterious figure had. However, as soon as she lifted her foot, an overwhelming desire to walk down the street overcame her.

She was pretty sure she would have followed through on that desire, but only seconds after she lifted her foot, a popping sound echoed throughout the street. Before, where there had been nothing but empty space, a house, similar to all the others on the street. The girl stood blinking surprised at what had just happened.

Then an anguished shriek, ad a guttural groan emanated from the house. Fear suddenly gripped the young girl; something terrible was happening in that house. Feeling exposed, the five-year-old quickly rushed behind a nearby tree, her heart racing.

'Did a, did a house just poof like magic? Was it always there? Are there actually people in there?' the little girl asked herself, trying to slow her heart and stop her spinning head. Then, like a flash of lightning, a thought, an explanation crossed her mind. 'Maybe it's some sort or really cool Halloween display.

'But then,' she thought, doubt creeping in, 'why is no one else here? Why wasn't it advertised along with the other festivities? Was this, could this be real magic?' Hesitantly, the girl peaked around the tree and looked at the house.

It was still there, still visible. Though ow it had gone almost completely dark. All the lights on the main level, and most of the lights on the upper floor were off. The only light was coming from a front room. After the initial shouts and grunts, the house had apparently gone quiet.

The lack of sound coming from the house made the girl feel more confident. She carefully crept back around the tree. The, just as she put her foot onto the sidewalk an absolutely anguished scream emanated from the house. It sounded like a woman, screaming for someone named Harry. Two strange green flashes then followed the scream.

Only seconds later, the house exploded. It was a really strange experience. There was no sound at all; the house just blew to pieces without a boom or even a creak. Then, the shrapnel from the house, boards and glass and destroyed household items, flew through the air, but came to a stop just before the sidewalk. It was as if the shrapnel hit an invisible wall and then fell to earth.

The girl stood staring at the strange sight for several seconds before she seemed to regain her senses. As the house exploded and the carnage rained down in the isolated area, the little girl turned on her heel. Whatever had happened in that house, whatever had happened to the people inside, it hadn't been good. She hurried across the street, down to her house, and once again silently began moving throughout it.

She wanted to tell someone, her mother or her father, but she didn't think anyone would believe her. This would just have to be another secret she kept. She was quickly realizing that magic involved a lot of secret keeping.

She would just have to keep it inside, keep it to herself, and hope that, eventually, someone would tell her what had happened in that house.

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Nearly six years after that night, the girl finally found out she was a witch and all her special talents and abilities were, in fact, magic. She then was whisked off to a magical school where, slowly, the full story of what she saw that Halloween night, of what happened to the Potters. And then, six years after that, the girl, no longer young, watched as the sole survivor of that terrible night, a young lad named Harry Potter was sorted into Gryffindor. Her house.

'Oh,' she thought as she watched the young boy took his seat at the table, 'how one moment can change your life.'

 _The End_


End file.
